WEEKLY PAC-10 REVIEW

USC 17 – Arizona 10

Saturday night Arizona’s effort to remain at the top of the Pac-10 died in the desert as their offense died in the 4th quarter. It was a hard fought defensive battle by both teams, and the Wildcats never quit. But it was the defensive power of USC that was too much to overcome. Arizona RB Nic Grigsby had the best day for the Wildcats with 69 yards rushing and 1 TD. Arizona RB Keola Antolin received the bulk of the carries early in the game until he was nicked up and the coaches would not let him return. Arizona QB Willie Tuitama (see “In the Dawghouse”) has now racked up three straight disappointing performances against the Trojans. USC QB Mark Sanchez managed the game well with 216 yards passing, 1 TD, and 1 interception. USC RB Stafon Johnson led the Trojans on the ground with 83 yards and 1 TD. USC WR Stanley Havili had the best night in the air with 67 yards and 1 TD. The Trojans are still where they belong, at the top of the conference.

UCLA 20 – California 41

California kept its Pac-10 title hopes alive with a 4th quarter 24 point explosion, but Cal had struggled to get its offense clicking throughout the day. Cal RB Jahvid Best (see “The Lead Dawgs”) was the steady hand of the Cal offense. Cal QB Kevin Riley played the entire game for the Bears, but was only able to come up with 153 yards passing and 2 TDs. The Cal receiving core was evening spread out in production, but the leader on the day was WR Nyan Boateng who came up with 67 yards receiving and 1 TD. But the Bear’s offense was helped out by the defense returning 2 interceptions for TDs. Bruin QB Kevin Craft had a poor performance, only accounting for 206 yards passing with 4 interceptions (that had the 2 taken back for scores). The Bruins once again couldn’t come up with a ground game, with 6 different rushers compiling only 23 yards on the day. Bruin TE Ryan Moya had his second straight week of lower than expected numbers, only coming up with 2 receptions for 19 yards. Bruin WR Taylor Embree continues to be the main target of the UCLA passing attack in the absence of Moya’s production by catching 5 receptions for 90 yards.

Oregon 54 – Arizona State 20

The Oregon offense compiled over 500 yards of total offense against the Sun Devils, a team that is sinking to the bottom of the Pac-10 like they were wearing cement shoes. Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli (see “The Lead Dawgs”) lead the Ducks in everything except receiving and tackles! Oregon QB Justin Roper did see some snaps, throwing for 86 yards and 1 TD. Oregon RBs Jeremiah Johnson & LeGarrette Blount posted identical numbers with 58 yards rushing and 2 TDs each. Oregon QB turned WR Chris Harper is finding a home at wideout, hauling in 85 yards and 1 TD to lead all the Ducks in receiving. Arizona State QB Rudy Carpenter continues to drag his team down with him, or is it the other way around? All finger pointing aside, Carpenter only put up 146 yards passing, 1 TD, and 2 interceptions on 30 pass attempts. Arizona State WR Michael Jones was the only Sun Devil to reach the endzone with 50 yards receiving and just the single score.

Notre Dame 33 – Washington 7

The Dawgfather spent Saturday night sitting on the couch in my Jake Locker jersey, drinking a beer, and watching a sad display. But it wasn’t the action on the field that was sad. Yes the Huskies lost, and yes the Huskies have no offense. But it was the fans that I was ashamed of. As Washington headed into the locker room at the half, only being down 17-0 (behind some great defensive play in the first half), an 80% full stadium proceeded to boo their very own home team. That’s my team you’re boo’ing you bums! Once the Huskies returned for the second half, the stadium had cleared out to nearly 40% capacity. This is all I need to see to understand that the fans, alumni, and boosters have had enough. Signs in the crowd read “Please Fire Ty Immediately” and “You Can Have Him Back” (referring to Notre Dame). The Dawgfather gives Willingham a 75% chance of being let go this week, and a 100% chance of being fired before the final home stand that starts November 8th. Oh by the way, the top Husky producer was WR D’Andre Goodwin with 47 yards receiving and 1 TD.

“The Lead Dawgs”
Week 9 Best Performances

*Jeremiah Masoli (QB Oregon) – Masoli lead the Ducks in rushing and passing Saturday night with 85 yards on the ground for 1 TD, and 147 yards in the air for 1 TD and 1 interception. Just as The Dawgfather predicted, the Sun Devil-D would focus on Johnson and Blount in the ground game, and Masoli rose to the occasion to be the leading rusher on the night.
*Jahvid Best (RB California) – Best appears to running on all cylinders, putting together a 115 yard and 1 TD performance against a tough UCLA defense. Yes the coaches are splitting carries right now, but you can expect Best to keep putting up his numbers. If you are in the playoff hunt in your league, I suggest making a move to obtain Best in a trade. With Oregon State in week 12 and Stanford in week 13, he may be the little push you need to stay alive.

“In the Dawghouse”
Week 9 Worst Performances

*Willie Tuitama (QB Arizona) – The Dawgfather swung and missed on this one. How could Tuitama not finally put it together against USC at home as a senior? He had 14 completions on 30 attempts, 88 yards, and 1 interception. The nail in the coffin was the USC defense stuffing Tuitama on the QB sneak, not giving up a single inch.
*Kahlil Bell (RB UCLA) – The Dawgfather hit this one out of the park! Bell only had 6 carries for 5 yards, with his longest run on the day only being 3 yards. It is evident that his ankle is not close to 100%, and as long as Rick Neuheisel continues to press him into action he will never get fully healthy.
*Keegan Herring (RB Arizona State) – If you haven’t figured it out yet, the Sun Devils have no ground game, PERIOD! Herring was seen as a top Pac-10 fantasy option before the season but the numbers have not lived up to the hype. Herring gained a measly 15 yards on 8 carries against Oregon. If you are still holding onto him, stop it! Dump him and walk away.

“Visiting the Vet”
Injury Updates

*Justin Roper – QB Oregon (knee, played in limited snaps, showed no problems in Arizona State game)
*Rudy Carpenter – QB Arizona State (ankle, played in Oregon game)
* Keola Antolin – RB Arizona (uncertain injury, but he was held out of the game for some sort of injury sustained during USC game)
*Jacquizz Rodgers – RB Oregon State (leg injury, on bye week, status unknown)
*Joe McKnight – RB USC (toe injury, played in limited action in Arizona game)
*Kahlil Bell – RB UCLA (ankle, played but was very poor in California game)
*David Freeman – RB Washington (ankle, played in limited snaps, showed no problems in Arizona State game)
*Terrence Austin – WR UCLA (concussion & strained neck, has been released from hospital, out indefinitely)

“Pound Pick-Ups”
Waiver Wire Updates

*Terrence Scott (WR Oregon) – Now that the Oregon QB situation has started to settle, Scott is back to producing on the field again. Scott had 92 all-purpose yards and 1 TD for the Ducks against Arizona State.
*Shane Vereen (RB California) – After having a poor performance last week against Arizona, Vereen came back with a solid day on the ground. Vereen rushed for 99 yards on 14 carriers as he split carries with Jahvid Best. If you are in a Pac-10 league it would be wise to grab Vereen as a way of creating depth on your roster.
*Stafon Johnson (RB USC) – With McKnight not at 100%, Johnson is emerging as the tough yardage back. His hard running in the second half of the Arizona game helped keep the explosive Wildcat offense off the field, and allowed the Trojan offense to chew up valuable clock.